Kirk Cousins Affirms Desire to Be a Viking for Life

Kirk Cousins Affirms Desire to Be a Viking for Life
Kirk Cousins

Speculation exists now — and will increase in the coming weeks — about a potential Kirk Cousins trade this offseason.

The Minnesota Vikings quarterback received a slimmer payment in 2020 (per cap hit, anyway), earning $21 million of his contract extension. In that season, his yearly earnings were toward the middle of the league, making less money than passers like Jacoby Brissett and Jimmy Garoppolo. His performance in 2020 was not adjudicated to his relative cap hit because the backdated segment of his deal — $45 million — is what critics were waiting for. It’s an easier task of savagery to skewer a quarterback who earns $45 million than $21 million.

During the duration of Cousins’ 2020-2022 contract, he is the eighth-highest paid quarterback in the business. Yet, dumbfoundingly, the only thing that matters to folks now is the $45 million figure slated to hit the books in 2022. The petite figure in 2020 be damned — nobody cares. It is not convenient for naysayers to tell the whole story when spinning anti-Cousins arguments.

Therefore, the trade Cousins fodder is ever-present in the digital stratosphere. He’s been linked to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints, and Denver Broncos.

But left up to him, Cousins doesn’t want to go anywhere — ever.

Much of the next few weeks and months will be spent deliberating the merits and qualms of Cousins — are his annual 4,000+ passing yards and 30+ touchdown passes good enough for the Vikings? Many say no — not at $33 million per season.

Yet, left up to him. he wants to remain with the franchise. Inevitably, folks will ponder whether Cousins would accept the cherished “team-friendly deal,” enabling the Vikings to re-fortify a defense under [presumably] a new head coach.

But Cousins’ affirmation to remain in Minnesota is a noteworthy soundbite. He didn’t have to advertise his feelings. But he did. And it is unlikely that he lied — why offer the statement in the first place?

Kirk Cousins
Image Courtesy of Twitter

Cousins’ future in Minnesota depends on the general manager’s name and that person’s mindset. He must decide if Cousins is personally accountable for the Vikings missing the postseason in three of four seasons. Or – is firing the head coach and pairing a new one with Cousins the wisest strategy?

If Rick Spielman remains in charge, the team will probably hire a Cousins-friendly skipper, give the quarterback one more audition with a new regime, and evaluate thereafter. But if Spielman is fired and Zimmer departs too, well, the Vikings could be wildly unrecognizable.

The takeaway from Cousins’ brief press conference, though, is his proclivity to stay in the North Star State. And why would he leave? He’s made $115 million with the Vikings to date.

Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).

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